My Stepbrother's Dirty Little Secret novel Chapter 216

Chapter 216

Chapter 216

Raphael

I stepped forward, and reached for her, my hands hovering near her trembling shoulders, but the second I touched her, she flinched.

“Don’t,” she gasped, trying to twist away. Her pride was still fighting, even through the wreckage of her confession, “Don’t touch me because you feel sorry for me. I don’t want your pity, Raphael. Just let me go.”

She scrambled back, her heels slipping on the wet pavement, but I was done with the distance. I was done with the talking,

I lunged, my hand snaking around her waist. She tried to push against my chest, her small hands flat against my heart, but I didn’t budge. I jerked her forward, a sudden movement that stole the breath from her lungs. I pulled her into me so hard that her chest slammed against mine, the impact rattling us both.

I wrapped my arms around her like a vice, pinning her against my body.

“Stop,” I said, “Stop fighting me. Just for one goddamn second, be still.”

At first, she stayed rigid, her muscles tight as wire, her hands balled into fists between us. She was still trying to be the girl who didn’t need anyone. But I didn’t loosen my grip. I held her with a hard pressure, my chin resting on the top of her head, my coat shielding her from the wind.

Slowly, the fight leaked out of her. The fists against my chest uncurled, her fingers clutching at my shirt as if it were the only thing keeping her from drowning. She went small in my arms, her whole body sagging.

I held her through the tremors. I wasn’t a man who knew how to comfort, but I knew how to hold territory. And right now, she was territory that mattered.

“Stop!” she snapped, as she shoved against my shoulders again, “Stay away from me! How many times do I have to say it? I don’t need you to care about me!”

I could care for her like family. I could keep her safe, and protect her from the world. I could still want her, that dark, private lust wasn’t going anywhere but I could keep it separate.

I don’t love. I’ve never loved anyone romantically, it was too messy, too unconventional for a man like me.

The “no feelings” part of the deal might be a struggle for a woman like her, someone who felt everything so loudly.

I could be concerned for her. I could watch over her well-being the same way I did with Aunt Alessia or my sisters- in-law, Claire and Madeleine. They were under my protection, and so was she. She was part of the fold now.

I glanced at her. She looked so small, so fragile. I didn’t need to love her to own her safety. I just needed to be the only thing she had left to lean on.